This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
It is increasingly common for people to monitor their physiology while exercising. Exercise machines often include heart rate monitors to measure the user's heart rate, but these of course require the user to remain stationery at the machine. Chest straps to monitor heart rate and/or respiration of an athlete have been developed, but these can be cumbersome and uncomfortable and therefore, are not widely used.
Recently, developments in ear-based physiologic monitors have demonstrated their acceptability for medical applications. Attempts have been made to incorporate these sensors into earbuds and earphones. See for example, LeBoeuf, et al., U.S. Pat. No. 8,157,730, for Physiological and Environmental Monitoring Systems and Methods. However, maintaining the sensors in proper position for consistent and accurate monitoring remains a challenge.